This
week's featured article is written by Victoria
Pynchon of Beverly Hills, California.

The Cost of a Thing is
Your Life

When
a decision-maker says, “it’s only about money,” he means
that the choice to be made is purely rational and that strong
emotions – feelings – will play no role in the
analytic process to follow. When lawyers say a case is
“only about money,” they are not only saying that
emotional factors will not influence their
decisions. They are often also...

Post-Decision
Dissonance
by Geoff SharpI spent this last week rising at 5.30am to
head down to a pristine Fijian beach on the Pacific Ocean.I would sit on the sand, bleary eyed in my
lavalava, watching the fishermen bring in their catch for the early morning wet
markets of Suva and Nadi.When we're on holiday I'm on
...

If I Settle it Now... It Will Mean that I Killed Herby Victoria Pynchon
The
September 27 decision of the California Court of Appeal in
Simmons v. Lida Ghaderi, affirmed the enforcement of a
settlement agreement based upon documents prepared for and
during a mediation, as well as on a sworn declaration by the
mediator himself. The convoluted rationale supporting the...

Mediation Mastery - Do You Have This?by Kristina Haymes
Many
different traits characterize master mediators. For example,
characteristics such as patience, creativity, perseverance are
often cited – but there’s one characteristic that
consistently tops the list of...

The Value of Diagnostic Questionsby Victoria Pynchon
If
we want to deliver "win-win" agreements to our
clients, says Professor Leigh Thompson of North- western's
Kellogg School of Business, we need to be asking why our negotiating partners want what they want (determining their
interests) instead of...

Marketing Tips from Hell's Kitchenby Dina Beach Lynch
Anyone else obsessed with Gordon Ramsey and Hell's Kitchen? It's one of those
reality shows (OK, so it's not Masterpiece Theater) where contestants attempt to
win their dream job- running a million dollar restaurant in Las Vegas. During
the...

Pricing Your Mediation Servicesby Kristina Haymes
Some interesting questions to think about: To what extent does your fee
structure reflect the value you provide? How are your fees viewed by the
marketplace? In our....

When
Your Head and Gut Slug it Outby Victoria Pynchon
Mr. Thrifty, who has not made an appearance in this blog for some time, trusts
his head more than his gut. Not to engage in gender stereotypes, but when I err,
I tend to....

Tips
for Getting into Business Publicationsby Dina Beach Lynch
I've said that part of the trouble with growing the ADR profession is that we
have a very low media profile. It's almost non-existent beyond the traditional
vehicles of mediation and arbitration. Here are some tips from....

Conspiracy
Theories and Granfalloonsby Vickie Pynchon
Every seasoned trial lawyer knows that in the absence of
critical information, juries simply make stuff up to fill in the gaps. They, and
we, do this semi-consciously and....

It’s Still Just A Duck – Not Mediation!by Perry S. Itkin
In an earlier post I noted that some ADR processes are called
mediation when, in fact and practice, they are not mediation at all! So, what on
earth is "binding mediation?" In the California case of....

Negotiating
in Chinaby Anthony Cerminaro
Westerners need to know more than basic Chinese
etiquette to negotiate successfully with the Chinese according to...

GETTING
IT STRAIGHT: Understanding Mediator Certificationby Diane Levin
Anyone planning a career in mediation here in the U.S. should be aware that
one of the ongoing debates in the mediation field concerns credentialing
and certification of mediators. It is an issue of great importance to the
profession, generating significant discussion and debate for the past two...